The Temple Muslim Students Association is attempting to shut down the scheduled appearance of Geert Wilders on October 20. As part of its Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week, and its campaign to Stop the Campus War Against Israel and the Jews, the David Horowitz Freedom Center is sponsoringÂ appearances by Dutch Parliamentarian Geert Wilders at Temple and Columbia universities (October 20 and 21). The Muslim Students Association has issued a statement condemning the event and calling on the Temple Administration to close it down. The MSA statement can be found at the end of this post. The David Horowitz Freedom Center statement follows:

David Horowitz Freedom Center Response to the Muslim Students Association

The Temple Muslim Students Association has issued a call to the Temple University administration to censor the forthcoming campus appearance of Dutch Parliamentarian Geert Wilders on the 20th of October, which is sponsored by the David Horowitz Freedom Center. The Temple administration should reject this attack on the First Amendment rights of all members of the Temple community.

It is not surprising that the Muslim Students Association would seek to shut down the free speech of Dutch parliamentarian Geert Wilders who has been an outspoken critic of Islamic terrorists and Islamic attacks on Jews and other religions.Â Assaults on the First Amendment and efforts to censor critics of radical Islam are, in fact, typical of the tactics used by the Muslim Students Association, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim American Society, all groups which support the jihad against the west and are part of the network created by the Muslim Brotherhood, which is the parent organization of the terrorist groups al-Qaeda and Hamas. The faculty advisor for Temple MSA is presently a member of the Muslim Brotherhood.

It is the height of hypocrisy for the Muslim Students Association to accuse Geert Wilders of spreading hate or anyone of being a hate group. Chapters of MSA at UC Irvine and Ohio State have raised money for the terrorist group Hamas whose goal — as stated in its official charter — is the destruction of the Jewish state and the extermination of the Jews. Speakers sponsored by the MSA have called for the execution of homosexuals, war against the United States and theÂ destruction of the Jewish state and the extermination of the Jews. Every year, on the day commemorating the birth of the Jewish state, the MSA sponsors nationwide campus protests against the existence of the Jewish state calling its creation the â€œnakbaâ€ â€“ the catastrophe. This is an act of genocidal hate.

Temple MSA refers to the fact that security will be necessary at the event as proof that Geert Wilders is dangerous. This is the perfect Orwellian mindset of supporters of the jihad. The threat to the Wilders event making security measures necessary comes from Muslim radicals who have already assassinated two prominent Dutch critics of Islamic terrorism â€“ Pym Fortun and Theo Van Gogh (who not incidentally both happened to be gay).

In point of fact Wilders has not been tried by any Dutch court, and was recently exonerated by a British court which declared the ban on his entry illegal.

The Temple community should reject the call by the MSA to censor free speech on the Temple campus, and should recognize it for what it is â€“ an assault on the right of all Americans to have a democracy that is inclusive, tolerant and respectful of the rights of others.

David Horowitz, Craig Snider

For the David Horowitz Freedom Center Philadelphia

Statement from the Muslim Students Association on Geert Wilder’s visit

The Temple University Muslim Students Association (MSA), one of the largest, most active and socially conscious student organizations on Temple’s campus, is issuing this public statement of protest concerning the invitation of Geert Wilders to address the Temple community on October 20, 2009. Geert Wilders is a far-right Dutch MP who is infamous for his anti-Islamic rhetoric and extreme hatred towards Muslims. A person who has been tried in the Netherlands Supreme Court for his hate speech concerning Islam, banned from the United Kingdom due to the threat he poses to community harmony, and is concurrently being charged for violating anti-hate laws in the European Union, should not be allowed to address the Temple community.

Temple MSA speaks for the many Muslims and socially conscious students and faculty on campus when we say that the presence of Geert Wilders on our campus is a breech of Temple Universityâ€™s pledge to ensure the wellbeing and safety of all students and faculty on campus. The Muslim population at Temple feels attacked, threatened, and ultimately unsafe that Mr. Wilders has been invited to voice his hate-driven opinions. The fact alone that backpacks are prohibited for entry to this event reinforces our argument that this creates an unsafe atmosphere where prejudiced, racist and vehemently hateful words will be disguised under the veil of academia.

Temple MSA deplores the decision made by Temple College Republicans, The David Horowitz Freedom Center, Temple University Purpose, Temple Student Activities, and Temple University as an institution of higher learning, for welcoming Geert Wilders when so many have found his speech to be repugnant to society as a whole.

We condemn Temple University for being the first university in the United States to allow Mr. Wilders to address their population and hope that the administration realizes the reputation and ideologies they are fostering not only to the Temple community, but to the world. The decision to allow Mr. Wilders to share his viewpoints is a danger not only for the public safety of Muslims and the honor of the core principles of Islam, but also for academic integrity and objectivity on campus.

We strongly urge that his invitation be rescinded immediately in order to foster appreciation of free speech that is not based on hatred and discrimination.